If you are like me who is obsessed with making sure the tripod and the camera are perfectly leveled before shooting, then you’d never take any shot. Thankfully, there is a solution that will have you spending less time aligning the bubble and it is called Benro Theta.
Benro Theta is not just another old good-looking tripod. It is the world’s first auto-leveling tripod which, at the touch of a button, a built-in motor and gyroscope will automatically find its level in seconds.
Of course, you can choose manually adjust the level if you so desire, or when the battery conks out. Think the latter is less likely since the battery module affords up to 8,000 leveling before needing to recharge.
The extending of the legs has also been re-engineered. Instead of extending a section at a time, all it takes is a twist and pull to extend all sections of each leg. This enables deployment in mere seconds.
The ball head has been completely designed too. It has a quick lock mechanism. With the quick-release piece attached to the camera, all you have to do is to press the camera into the ball head and it clicks into place and locks automatically.
The ball head can switch quickly from freeform adjustment and roll locking mode to allow only pan and tilt. The latter allows pan and tilt while keeping the camera perfectly leveled.
The tripod is compatible with Arca Swiss plates and L-brackets.
The Benro Theta further boasts a trigonous center column that allows the tripod to have round legs and yet achieve a space-saving compact tripod when retracted.
Another interesting feature is the module system. Circling the neck of the tripod are three connection ports for modules. The connection ports are where the battery module connects to power the self-leveling function.
Additional modules are available for remote camera control and for livestreaming from DSLR. The former lets you remote control your DSLR using your smartphone.
A few other notables include aluminum casting, carbon fiber legs, an anti-slip leg locking mechanism, and IP65-rated construction.
The Benro Theta is possibly the best thing to happen since the invention of, well, a tripod.
You can learn more about Theta on its Kickstarter campaign page where you can also pre-order a unit for US$399 or more. The campaign is overwhelmingly funded, btw.
At the time of this writing, it has rolled in nearly 2 million dollars from over 3,500 backers. If all goes as planned, delivery will happen sometime in June 2023.
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Images: Benro.
